Deep within one of her many hidden makeshift outposts out in the world, Aletheia is hard at work doing anything but her obligations as Azem. While she was responsible enough to not shirk her duties to the Convocation, she still found it... stifling that she had to do them in the first place. It took her away from much valuable time simply enjoying herself in her own research, which, funnily enough was the reason why she had to take the seat of Azem in the first place.
"Such a monumental error on my part," she grumbled to herself as she held out her hand on her newest test subject, the poor creature squirming under her touch as it cried out in pain. "Perhaps I applied too much pressure..."
Yes, she had indeed been caught doing... less than savory experiments on some of the more exotic creatures of Etheirys. It was all for the sake of knowledge, of course. A goal that she would stop at nothing to complete even if it meant curtailing some of her more... extreme tendencies. Unfortunately, her colleagues took offence to her methods, citing her as 'dangerous' or 'unstable.'
Luckily for them, she listened readily to logic.
"I see... So that is how it functions," Aletheia hummed to herself, her thoughts running a mile a minute as she recorded her findings on her trusty grimoire. "It keeps screaming whenever I place my hand on its heart... which means that it is much less sturdy than its other counterparts..."
Ignoring the squirts of blood currently staining her face, the current Azem continued with her experiments, using any and all tools available to her for her methods. Sure, it wasn't as thorough as he usual fare, but she was at least doing things 'up to standard,' so to speak. She was allowed to continue with her relentless pursuit of knowledge as she saw fit, so long as she submitted all of the required paperwork to their respective bureaus and get their approval.
Nevertheless, that didn't mean all of her experiments had to get approval before she started doing them anyway.
"Ooh... Perhaps Athena might find a use for such potent venoms," she wondered to herself as she casually fondled the poor creature's poison gland. "I wonder what she's been up to..."
Lost in her thoughts, Aletheia let of a faint smile before returning her attention to her work. There was much to be done, after all, and it wouldn't do for her to allow her thoughts on her former partner to cloud them. Athena was busy with her own work now, one that also allowed her to experiment as she saw fit.
Truly, fate had it that they never be parted from their true passions.
Giggling to herself, Azem adjusted her new ocular device to her face before focusing on the task at hand. Her subject was about to expire, which meant that she had to pick up her pace.